"Want to come sit at the table by the pool?" she asked. "I figure we'll be able to hang out and catch up while they do their boy thing."
Ollie made a face at her, but she just laughed. "Don't try to pretend you're not eager to get to the grill."
He laughed with her. "I'd never claim that I wasn't. But it's a man thing, not a boy thing."
Callie led her around to the terrace by the pool, and Zia and the dogs came too—although whether she brought them or they brought her, Alara couldn't really say.
"So," Callie said once they were seated. "How do you want to work this? Do you want to swim first?" She glanced over at Zia. "Do you want to play with the dogs while Mom and I catch up? Or…"
She turned back to Alara, but Zia answered for her. "I can catch up with Peanut and Butter while you catch up with Mom." She came and rested her hands on Alara's knees. "You can hang out with your friend while I hang out with mine. Right, Mom?"
"I can. Thanks, Z."
She and Callie watched Zia run around with the dogs. She loved seeing her daughter so happy.
"Ollie wasn't joking, you know. They really do love her. She's such a special kid."
"She is. And she loves them." She stared out at the rolling hills for a few moments.
"Did I say something wrong?" Callie asked. "You went all quiet."
"No, it's fine. Sorry, I was just thinking…"
"I know. She wants a dog of her own, doesn't she?"
Alara nodded. "Yeah, but…" She shook her head. "It's just not an option for us."
Callie reached over and gave her hand a squeeze. "I know. It wasn't for me either, for the longest time. But maybe one day…" She let her words trail off.
Alara shrugged. She knew Callie meant well. But the last thing she wanted to do today was start trying to figure out what might happen in the future for her. She was trying to stay away from that subject.
"Sorry, I don't mean to push about you and Reaves. But I am hopeful, you know? That one day, in the not-too-distant future, when you've worked out what you're going to do, that maybe…"
"I know."
Usually when she and Callie talked, she avoided the subject of where things could go between her and Reaves, because she had to sort her own life out before she could think about him maybe becoming part of it. Now, she was desperately trying to stay away from the question of how much life she might have left.
"Hey. What's wrong?" Callie asked.
She shook her head.
"Oh, my God, I'm going on about Reaves. And I haven't asked you how you got on at the doctor. What happened?"
"He said there are a few possibilities for what might be going on with me. They did some bloodwork and I have to go back in a week." She hurriedly repeated the line that she'd practiced. She'd known that Callie would ask, and she'd hoped—but she should have known better—that it’d be enough.
"Okay, that's the official line. What's really going on?" Callie asked.
She blew out a sigh and dropped her chin to her chest. "I don't know, Callie. I'm scared."
"Why? What did they say?"
"I'm probably being stupid. He said that my symptoms could be a lot of things. And most of them are easily treatable." She slowly lifted her gaze to meet Callie's. "It's thatmost of themthat got to me."
"Let's try not to worry. They have to say stuff like that, don't they?"
She shrugged. "I honestly don't know. I might be exaggerating. I might be dreading the worst when that's not what he meant at all. But the other thing, Callie—he said that I'd need an appointment to go over the results of the blood tests in a week. Or sooner."
Callie reached for her hand. "It's gonna be okay. It's all gonna be okay."
